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Thursday, February 15, 2007

Simmering embers cool down - Team of cavers to continue exploration mission

The Meghalaya Adventures Association and the team of cavers, comprising 40 speleologists (caving experts) and scientists, put their foot down and decided to continue their exploration mission at Shnongrim ridge under Nongkhlieh area of the Jaintia Hills district in Meghalaya.

At a meeting today with the coal traders, who are peeved with the association for filing a PIL in the Supreme Court to prevent unscrupulous mining, the cave experts, led by general secretary of the association Brian Kharpran Daly, put up a brave front. They asserted that cave exploration would continue at Shnongrim.

The coal trader’s delegation was led by one Balious Swer, secretary of Khlierieht sub-division of coalminers’ association.

Additional district magistrate F.M. Doph attended the meeting. When contacted, he said the consultations ended on a positive note and another round of talks would be held on Friday to decide on a final outcome.

The cavers, representing various caving organisations from the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Austria, Canada, Scotland, the US and Germany, along with some local experts, are on a monthlong expedition.The contention of the coal traders was that the presence of the cavers had caused “concern” among residents of the area.

But the climbdown by the coal traders from their demand at today’s meeting is said to have been prompted by the not-so-favourable response from the inhabitants of the Jaintia Hills.

The coal lobby’s threat to the team, it seems, has not gone down too well with them. Most of them also seem to agree that “it is time to preserve nature and unscientific mining”.

The tie up between the association and well-known speleologists has resulted in the cave exploration mission to extend the longest cave system in the Indian subcontinent — Krem (cave) Um Im-Liat Prah (cave system) to Krem Labbit(Khaidong). The two organisations had earlier discovered a number of cave systems in the state.

Swer is said to have said that coal traders were apprehensive that the PIL filed in the Supreme Court would affect coal trade and the livelihood of many people in the Jaintia Hills.

On being informed by the association and international cavers about the adverse effects of open cast and unscrupulous mining on the environment and on health, Swer agreed to “strike a balance,” between mining and environment. He is said to have agreed to allow the exploration to go on unopposed.

The Jaintia Hills has been a major centre for coal trade and most of it is exported to Bangladesh through the Amlarem-Dawki-Tamabil route. While the revenue earned from coal export runs into several crores of rupees, not a single rupee has been spent by the traders or exporters in repairing the roads.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Simmering embers cool down - Team of cavers to continue exploration mission

The Meghalaya Adventures Association and the team of cavers, comprising 40 speleologists (caving experts) and scientists, put their foot down and decided to continue their exploration mission at Shnongrim ridge under Nongkhlieh area of the Jaintia Hills district in Meghalaya.

At a meeting today with the coal traders, who are peeved with the association for filing a PIL in the Supreme Court to prevent unscrupulous mining, the cave experts, led by general secretary of the association Brian Kharpran Daly, put up a brave front. They asserted that cave exploration would continue at Shnongrim.

The coal trader’s delegation was led by one Balious Swer, secretary of Khlierieht sub-division of coalminers’ association.

Additional district magistrate F.M. Doph attended the meeting. When contacted, he said the consultations ended on a positive note and another round of talks would be held on Friday to decide on a final outcome.

The cavers, representing various caving organisations from the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Austria, Canada, Scotland, the US and Germany, along with some local experts, are on a monthlong expedition.The contention of the coal traders was that the presence of the cavers had caused “concern” among residents of the area.

But the climbdown by the coal traders from their demand at today’s meeting is said to have been prompted by the not-so-favourable response from the inhabitants of the Jaintia Hills.

The coal lobby’s threat to the team, it seems, has not gone down too well with them. Most of them also seem to agree that “it is time to preserve nature and unscientific mining”.

The tie up between the association and well-known speleologists has resulted in the cave exploration mission to extend the longest cave system in the Indian subcontinent — Krem (cave) Um Im-Liat Prah (cave system) to Krem Labbit(Khaidong). The two organisations had earlier discovered a number of cave systems in the state.

Swer is said to have said that coal traders were apprehensive that the PIL filed in the Supreme Court would affect coal trade and the livelihood of many people in the Jaintia Hills.

On being informed by the association and international cavers about the adverse effects of open cast and unscrupulous mining on the environment and on health, Swer agreed to “strike a balance,” between mining and environment. He is said to have agreed to allow the exploration to go on unopposed.

The Jaintia Hills has been a major centre for coal trade and most of it is exported to Bangladesh through the Amlarem-Dawki-Tamabil route. While the revenue earned from coal export runs into several crores of rupees, not a single rupee has been spent by the traders or exporters in repairing the roads.